Success Story

Summit Truck Body

Industry

Truck Transportation

Location

Portland, Oregon

Date Founded

1978

Number of Employees

50

Background

As of Q1 2024, Summit Truck Body has around 50 employees in Oregon and Washington. Summit generates about $30 million a year in revenue. They build on average six truck bodies a day of mixed model composition: dry freight, refrigerated vans, curtain-side vans, and flatbeds.

The company has been growing rapidly since it was purchased by the employees as an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) about seven years ago. To date, its primary market has been the Pacific Northwest.

40 PERCENT

INCREASE IN PRODUCTIVITY

50 EMPLOYEES

JOB GROWTH & RETENTION

23 MILLION

FOR NEW FACILITY AND TOOLING
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The Situation

OMEP has worked closely with Summit for six years. Four years ago, Summit started thinking about expanding into new geographic markets in Northern California and southwest through Phoenix.

However, their facility was at capacity and completely consumed by their existing client base in the Northwest.

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The Solution

Summit decided to take a bold step and build a new facility that would triple its capacity. This would allow them to serve the current market while expanding geographically.

OMEP helped Summit choose a piece of land, design the three new assembly lines, and worked closely with the design and construction team through building and permitting. OMEP has helped develop new fixtures and processes, established training for the growing team, and coached the rising leaders within the company. OMEP has been present for each major step and initiative Summit has taken on its growth path.

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The Results

  • Cost savings: Hundreds of thousands
  • Culture: Summit clarified its values, mission, and strategy
  • Productivity: Increase of 35-40% in each of the previous 3 years
  • Job growth/retention: From 25 people in 2021 to 50 in 2023
  • Investment: $23 million for the new facility and all tooling
  • New markets: Wider geographical area reaching South
  • New products: OMEP is currently helping Summit design a new product for a new market
  • Continuous Improvement: OMEP has trained staff on Continuous Improvement methodologies and tools

Summit Truck Body is proudly 100% employee-owned and over the past several years has grown dramatically, capitalizing on opportunities within the industry and market. That the value of the company is shared by all employee-owners makes the day-to-day operational decisions all the more relevant to each member of this incredible team. To assist in this daily journey, OMEP has been a valued part of the Summit team over the years. We appreciate the help that OMEP provides and attribute a measurable amount of Summit’s success to their assistance. In fact, I’d say it has been invaluable.

Ted Croce

President and CEO